India’s premier educational institution, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), is going to be powered by solar energy, courtesy a 500 kW rooftop project commissioned by Fourth Partner Energy.

The project has been implemented under SECI’s 1,000 MW grid-connected rooftop solar PV system scheme for government buildings. The university will receive solar power at a flat rate of ₹3.39 (~$0.047)/kWh for 25 years. The solar power generated from these installations will save over 60 percent in power costs for the university.

“In support of the government’s green initiative of reaching 99,533 MW of solar power by 2022, JNU on its part has begun to install solar since 2017 in its campus. Further expansion of solar energy generation and conservation has also been planned to realise the maximum capacity of solar power generation of 2 MW”, said M. Jagadesh Kumar, the vice-chancellor of JNU in a press statement.

Brajesh Kumar Sinha, the vice president at Fourth Partner Energy said, “We are happy to see their initiative in leading the way for educational institutions to become more environment friendly and promoting sustainability initiatives. We believe that our vast experience in executing and maintaining over 1,600 solar plants across 22 states helped us bag this prestigious project.”

The rooftop project is spread across eight buildings and was executed in 42 days. It is expected to reduce carbon emission by ~700 tons per year, the equivalent to planting 32,000 trees.

Another leading university in New Delhi, Jamia Millia Islamia University, also recently commissioned a 2.25 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) project on its premises. It would also receive solar power at a tariff of ₹3.39 (~$0.04711)/kWh for the next 25 years.

Mercom recently reported that solar – not black coal – is beginning to power classrooms, dormitories and canteens of multitudes of educational institutions across the country. Solar power is heating water, helping run laboratories, shining auditoriums, cooling down canteens, assisting in administrative work and illuminating street lights on school grounds. Due to surging electricity bills and the desire to protect the environment, a large number of educational institutions are turning to solar to meet their daily energy needs.

In July 2018, Amity University installed rooftop solar PV projects aggregating 1.8 MW across three campuses.

In May 2018, IIT Kharagpur had invited an expression of interest to develop 5.5 MW of solar projects.

Recently, Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology in Uttarakhand’s Pantnagar town tendered a 5 MW grid-connected rooftop solar PV project.

Solar initiatives undertaken by the educational institutions are setting a good example for the rest of the country. Not only will this make the country adopt a sustainable and economical source of power, it will also help the overall growth trajectory of the rooftop solar sector.

According to the latest quarterly report by Mercom India Research, India’s solar installations have reached 6.6 GW year-to-date with large-scale projects making up 5,382 MW and rooftop installations accounting for 1,240 MW. Rooftop installations in Q3 2018 accounted for 435 MW, which was a 5 percent increase from 415 MW installed in Q2 2018, and a 64 percent increase when compared to 265 MW installed in Q3 2017.